Coping with breast cancer: the Annual Edith Morley Lecture

Coping with breast cancer will be the theme for the University of Reading’s annual Edith Morley Lecture, held at the Whiteknights campus on Thursday 23 March.

Professor Nazanin Derakhshan, Professor of Experimental Psychopathology at the School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences will deliver the lecture. Her work has brought progressive and step-change research to the forefront of support systems for those with breast cancer.

She will provide an in-depth discussion on coping with breast cancer, exploring key themes such as support structures, cognitive research, and personal empowerment.

On average, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer every 10 minutes in the UK. Professor Derakhshan, who has worked with over 2,000 women with a primary or secondary breast cancer diagnosis, founded the Building Resilience in Breast Cancer Centre (BRiC), a research and practice centre which aims to empower women with a breast cancer diagnosis.

Based on cutting edge neuroscience research, BRiC equips women with the resilience tools they need to manage and protect themselves from anxiety and depression. Resilience builds on neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to form new neural connections towards better cognitive and emotional health, and BRiC’s main aim is to build resilience in better and more effective ways to improve the quality of life for breast cancer survivors.

Professor Derakhshan said: “Resilience is the practice of adaptation, flexibility, and adjustment. When confronted with a life-threatening disease such as breast cancer, options become limited, priorities change, and we can struggle to adapt to our new ‘normal’. Learning the art of resilience can help us endure the emotional roller coasters, and manage our emotions more efficiently.”

Event details

The Annual Edith Morley Lecture will be held on 23 March 2023, 18:30 – 20:00 in the Van Emden Theatre, Edith Morley Building, Whiteknights Campus. All are welcome to join. Register to attend via the University of Reading Events page.

The Annual Lecture is named after Edith Morley, who was the first woman to be appointed a university professor in the UK, in 1908 at University College, Reading, which became the University of Reading in 1926. The Edith Morley Lecture is held during the month of March as part of the University’s activities to celebrate Women’s History Month.